And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Saturday, July 12, 2025
Hood's Up. Does that mean this is an involuntary picnic?
I'm thinking that stopping in the shade and opening the hood would give the engine a chance to cool down... weren't they using just water in those days?
Not sure where they are in this picture, but Vapor Lock was a real thing back in the day, and cooling the engine compartment was somewhat helpful. In carburetor engines the gas in the lines feeding the carburetor would go from liquid to gas with too much heat and effectively block the gas from getting to the carburetor and shutting the engine down. I remember seeing several cars stuck by the side of the road with hoods up on the road from Merced to Yosemite. Climbing the hill after crossing the hot Central Valley was a prime spot for Vapor Lock issues. Fuel Injection systems solved the problem.
All you young-un's (sarc) don't realize how common this was; especially in hotter climates. It seems like everyone would pop there hoods whenever they stopped, if they planned on restarting in just an hour or two. And we all carried water (not that expensive anti-freeze stuff like I do now.) And the highway department (not the "department of transportation") kept 55 gal drums of water filled along steep grades for those who didn't have any, or ran out. This was true well into the 1970s here in AZ.
Remember 'Desert Water Bags'? They were pretty much ubiquitous when I was a kid in the fifties, hanging off of radiator caps and grills everywhere, especially in the mountains.
I haven't forgotten the tag lines 'saturate before filling' and 'cools by evaporation' almost 70 years later. What a hoot.
Canvas waterbags with a rope strap, remember them well. Went across death valley in the e a rly 60's with no air in the summer, all windows down and the no draft wings pointed in. This bag hung high on the grill to add evaporative cooling to the radiator. Only had to stop once to fill and cool the radiator down. Straight water, no anti freeze.
I enjoyed many fine times with ladies vapor locked in the woods. Youngsters don’t understand what they’re missing. And our picknicker missed an opportunity…
My uncle had a straight six Studebaker and he had to open the hood often to prevent vapour lock and also carried coke bottles full of water to pour on the fuel lines. Once you turn off the engine the temperature under the hood gets higher as the fan is no longer pushing air through the engine bay. Al_in_Ottawa
Benn there, done that.
ReplyDeleteIt was a crappy Chrysler minivan with a bad cooling system issue.
an old dodge, and I don't mean a chrysler product...
ReplyDeleteOr cooking stuff on the block.
ReplyDeletePeople used to wrap up their lunch in foil and heat it up under the hood all the time.
DeleteI'm thinking that stopping in the shade and opening the hood would give the engine a chance to cool down... weren't they using just water in those days?
ReplyDeleteYes they were. I remember well.
DeleteNot sure where they are in this picture, but Vapor Lock was a real thing back in the day, and cooling the engine compartment was somewhat helpful. In carburetor engines the gas in the lines feeding the carburetor would go from liquid to gas with too much heat and effectively block the gas from getting to the carburetor and shutting the engine down. I remember seeing several cars stuck by the side of the road with hoods up on the road from Merced to Yosemite. Climbing the hill after crossing the hot Central Valley was a prime spot for Vapor Lock issues.
ReplyDeleteFuel Injection systems solved the problem.
All you young-un's (sarc) don't realize how common this was; especially in hotter climates. It seems like everyone would pop there hoods whenever they stopped, if they planned on restarting in just an hour or two. And we all carried water (not that expensive anti-freeze stuff like I do now.) And the highway department (not the "department of transportation") kept 55 gal drums of water filled along steep grades for those who didn't have any, or ran out. This was true well into the 1970s here in AZ.
DeleteRemember 'Desert Water Bags'? They were pretty much ubiquitous when I was a kid in the fifties, hanging off of radiator caps and grills everywhere, especially in the mountains.
DeleteI haven't forgotten the tag lines 'saturate before filling' and 'cools by evaporation' almost 70 years later. What a hoot.
Canvas waterbags with a rope strap, remember them well. Went across death valley in the e a rly 60's with no air in the summer, all windows down and the no draft wings pointed in. This bag hung high on the grill to add evaporative cooling to the radiator. Only had to stop once to fill and cool the radiator down. Straight water, no anti freeze.
DeleteI enjoyed many fine times with ladies vapor locked in the woods. Youngsters don’t understand what they’re missing. And our picknicker missed an opportunity…
DeleteMy uncle had a straight six Studebaker and he had to open the hood often to prevent vapour lock and also carried coke bottles full of water to pour on the fuel lines. Once you turn off the engine the temperature under the hood gets higher as the fan is no longer pushing air through the engine bay.
ReplyDeleteAl_in_Ottawa
I use to have vapor lock in my stock 1929 Chevrolet. Started using "Marvel Mystery Oil" and never had the problem again.
ReplyDelete1952 - 53 Ford Wagon; could have had a flat head V-8, electrics were 6 VDC back then.
ReplyDeleteYup, ol' flatty overheated or hood up at lunch to prevent it from happening after lunch.
DeleteYea, and that's a very rare 2 door version.!
ReplyDeleteBubbarust